Second Kyrgyz Republic Demographic and Health Survey shows major improvements in child survival

09:55, 28 February 2014, 327

AKIPRESS.COM - The results for the 2012 Kyrgyz Republic Demographic and Health Survey (KgDHS) have been released by the National Statistical Committee and the Ministry of Health in late January.

The newly released survey, the second DHS in the Kyrgyz Republic, highlights a welcome a decline in infant and child mortality. The mortality rate for children younger than age five is 31 deaths per 1,000 live births, a dramatic decline from the rate of 72 deaths per 1,000 live births reported in the 1997 KgDHS.

However, the report also shows persistent high rates of poor child nutrition with almost one-fifth of children in the Kyrgyz Republic under five being stunted or severely stunted. Stunting, which represents chronic malnutrition, varies around the country with the highest rates in Osh city, Osh and Batken Oblasts.

The 2012 Kyrgyz Demographic and Health Survey collected data from more than 8,000 households. Interviews were conducted with 8,208 women and 2,413 men age 15-49.

The survey was conducted by the National Statistical Committee of the Kyrgyz Republic in collaboration with the Ministry of Health. ICF International provided technical assistance through the USAID-funded MEASURE DHS program. Funding for the survey was provided by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) with additional support from the United Nations Population Fund in the Kyrgyz Republic.